If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

quickest way to get photos and kits organized

I am ready to start working on some pages but everything I've download is still zipped and in no order. My photos are also in various folders and I have a had time trying to find what I'm looking for. Any way to quickly organize these items for easy viewing?

I place my zip files into the folder I want them to stay in. Then once I unzip, I move the zip file.
I sort my files by Site and then by Designer. It takes time to set it up, but once you are done, it is much easier to find what you are looking for is you know which site & designer. Since I use 99% GDS, that makes the first step easier for me.

Good luck, I am sure others will give you much better advice than I have.

I also use the site-designer method. I further divide it like this:
Free - site - designer
Stores - site - designer
so that when my friend and I have a mini-crop, I can easily tell her where/how I got the kits, so that she can get them too!
If you are looking for a way to organize by paper, colors, themes, etc then I highly recommend ACDSee. I LOVE it!

I organize my digi-supplies by Store/Designer too.
I will rename folders of things I have unzipped to fit my organization method.
I like to see alphas and collabs at the top of the sorting order. Collabs I will just put in the store's folder.

For my photos, I have tried lots of methods, but the only thing that seems to work for me is organizing by date. I have a folder for the year 2009, then folders for each month. When I upload images from my camera, I rename the files at that time to include the date info too -- for example, one of my photos from April would be 2009_apr_12345. This helps me because my dh has his own camera and it takes him forever to get them off the card and to me. When I burn my back up copies to disc, I know where to add his photos.

organize

I like to put all of my supplies on an external hard drive that I keep on my computer. I can navagate to it by going to my computer then to the hard drive. once there, I have sub divisions of Store, Kits, Alphas, Papers, Embelishments, and so on. Each item gets taged with the designer. Each catagory gets subdivided too. An example is Papers. Papers is subdivided into Paterned, multicolored, Blue, Green, Yellow and so on. Embelishments are subdivided into Ribbon and Bows, Paper fasteners, Tags, and so on. I can always add folders and subfolders as needed. I do this in Windows so that the folder shows thumbnails and I can use them in any program I want. It takes time to set up, but when I purchase something it gets put up quickly. When I want something, I can find it really fast.

ACDSee sorting

Originally Posted by babyofmine

I also use the site-designer method. I further divide it like this:
Free - site - designer
Stores - site - designer
so that when my friend and I have a mini-crop, I can easily tell her where/how I got the kits, so that she can get them too!
If you are looking for a way to organize by paper, colors, themes, etc then I highly recommend ACDSee. I LOVE it!

Tell me about ACDSee. Is it independent of the photo editing program?

I started out tagging my photos in the PSE 3.0 organizer. But I stopped after I had a lot of missing files. I had moved the photos to another location after I had burned a backup and then the PSE 3.0 organizer couldn't find them I guess.

Also, I heard that when I get a new computer or software upgrade then I would have to start my PSE organizer catalog all over again. I haven't been tagging my photos since, but I REALLY need a way to tag photos AND scrapbook supplies because my computer has become a jungle of both and it takes a LONG time to find what I want.

Okay, Store and then designer
sounds good but how do you handle when they sell at several stores?
Or CU from pers use products?

And if you split off into papers and embelies... and put all the solid papers together
Don't you lose the TOU and source? Making it so much harder to post proper credits for a layout.

I do by folders for designers or stores. Since I've already saved the previews, in the same folder with the kit, I don't bother to unzip anything. And since windows and PS automatically will allow a double click to open zipped files and allow access to the elements..... This may save space but you do loose being able to see all the elements and papers at a glance when opening the folder. Ones that are unzipped and show up with each item as a thumbnail are much easier to see and be able to select what might work in a layout.

But, that is my style of scrapping. I normally will start with a kit or challenge and then look for the photos to match or use.

And, I mostly also record in a works spreadsheet or database. Have an "About" word or word pad file as I'm making the daily rounds. Cut and paste the filename from the save box into that doc and later into the sprdst.
In there have designer, source website, date [of the blog post], date I DLed it, , location, kit name, description and comments.

More work that way but much quicker to seach this single document than the large hard drive.

for example, for the daily download, the text in the about file is:
Go helen 4/27 he_cu_antiquepostcards_mini_LRG he_cu_antiquepostcards_mini.zip 15.75 MB Go 4/28 6 CU Antique Postcards Mini - unused - late 1800s to early 1900s. No Credit required. Can be used as is or modified for your requirements. All in png file format 300dpi. Commercial and S4H/S4O ok. idea - use for Grandma & Mom travel pix journal boxes Order Number is: 187884

Then, each tab or comma allow a direct cut and paste into the spreadsheet cells.

Thanks much to designers who are descriptive like Helen. Not element1 2 3 4 5 6 in the zip file but HE_Postcard. So much easier for be to search for "string" or "bow" or "Tag" in the filenames.

I did start to have a separate folder for CU items, brushes, actions, styles.

I started to tag my supplies, but got to be to much for
With the exception of challenges, I usually scrap a page with mainly 1 kit
that has saved me tons of time in listing credits

I am not sure about keeping the zip and double clicking it -- I know you can view items in the zip, but I have had zip files get corrupt after a while. I will unzip a file, rename things if I have to, delete extra stuff like blinkies or multiple folder/preview files, things I know I will not use ( this is tough for me, but sometimes I know i will not be using a bright orange argyle paper :)